6. gameplan

i've danced around the subject for long enough, and after almost a week of pondering, i've finally decided to tackle the hard stuff: my gameplan.

so what am i actually going to do?

the trouble with these sorts of projects is that i can do whatever i want. which means i can start wherever i want.

so first things first, i guess. i have to finish "How to Be a Gentleman." i've been so focused on spending time with my family (and doing free laundry - thanks mom!) that i haven't had any time to read. that should change tomorrow, though, when mom, dad, rob and i all drive back to new york (yup, we're taking this family love fest on the road. after a few days here in nc it's time for mom and dad to try out ny for a change). assuming i don't drive (which i probably will - at least part of the way) i should be able to finish, since it isn't a very long book.

unfortunately, the book isn't really a roadmap. it's more of a playbook filled with scenarios and solutions. so i'm still going to be in uncharted territory once i finish. but i'll at least have some direction. i think. i should have a better idea of what a gentleman "is" - at least according to john bridges - which means a better idea of what i have to do to become one.

i also have a few ideas of my own i've been toying around with. i should probably make a list. i have a feeling a gentleman is supposed to be organized.

i have this idea in my head that gentlemen are very well rounded individuals. that they're very knowledgeable. about many things. many of which i know absolutely nothing. like whiskey. and scotch. and brandy. that is, if they're not all the same thing. because i think i heard once that scotch and whiskey were the same. maybe.

and wine. i love a good sweet dessert wine. and i have no problem drinking an entire bottle of champagne by myself. but i don't really know anything else about vino. plus, i've never really liked it. which just seems wrong. and i think i lack a real appreciation for wine because i don't know anything about it. so i should probably try to learn a little something.

and then there's food. and i mean good food. i really have the worst diet imaginable, mainly because i'm lazy, but also because i just don't cook. i think i know how to cook, but i just don't know what to cook. and i'm pretty sure i should know by now how to work some magic on a nice cut of meat.

so there's those things. and then there's exercise. and this is really going to be one of the hardest things imaginable, because i'm so morally against working out, it just seems weird to me. but i'm pretty sure it's a requirement for a gentleman to take care of his body. i mean, i'm pretty sure gentlemen have to be able to duel and fence and stuff. so i should probably learn how to use a sword.

but i don't have a sword, nor do i know where to get a sword. i did suck it up, however, and buy a new pair of running shoes. and i'm pretty sure this is the first new pair of tennis shoes i've owned since high school. which was *gasp* ten years ago this year. so i've at least got a pair of shoes to work out in. i guess i should ask my brother, the personal trainer, what exactly i should do. i could always try p90x because rob ordered it last year, but i just feel like working out with a dvd is cheating. i feel like i should be rowing or boxing or playing rugby or something. none of those things sound exciting to me, but i'm going to have to settle on something.

and then there's my wardrobe. which is actually not that bad. i think i just need to spruce it up a bit. maybe learn a new thing or two. and definitely stop wearing ratty clothes in public.

and on top of all of those things - and not to mention the list of others i'm going to end up compiling before this week is out, i have to find a job.

yea, i failed to mention that i'm currently unemployed. only since new year's eve. but still. my last job was temporary and now that it has finished, i need something else to do. and i'm at a loss for what. i really wish someone would just put me on broadway already, but i know fate doesn't want it to be that easy for me. so i'll keep trying. but in the meantime, i need to pay my bills. and i'd really like to be able to support myself doing something i enjoy. i'm just not sure what i enjoy anymore.

so there's that, too. because i definitely can't afford to be a gentleman on unemployment.

so that's the rough draft of my gameplan. it needs a little ironing out* but it'll get there. i do have all year, after all.

*i just realized i don't own an ironing board. i'm pretty sure i'll be hunted down by the extraordinary league of gentlemen if i don't get one. because i have a lot of clothes to press.